Brief Description

Students will work in groups of two to create an Excel graph that maps the changes in county population based on census results. They will then create a brief document; which will include their graph, explaining the results of their graph. This lesson meets Arizona State Standards in Technology, Social Studies, Writing and Mathematics.

Standards and Frameworks

Technology Standards

• 3T-E2. Use a variety of technology tools for data collection and analysis.
• 5T-E1. Locate information from electronic resources.
• 6T-E1. Determine when technology is useful and select and use the appropriate tools and technology resources to solve problems.

• 1SS-E1. Understand and apply the basic tools of historical research, including chronology and how to collect, interpret, and employ information from historical materials.
• W-E1.Use correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammar and usage, along with varied sentence structure and paragraph organization, to complete effectively a variety of writing tasks.
• W-E3.Write a summary that presents information clearly and accurately, contains the most significant details and preserves the position of the author.
• 2M-E1.Construct, read, analyze and interpret tables, charts, graphs and data plots (e.g., box-and-whisker, stem-and-leaf, and scatter plots).

Academic

• Using the Census website, students will compare population data to determine if Arizona counties’ population are growing or shrinking with 100 percent accuracy.
• Using this data and guide questions, students will write a brief paragraph explaining the impact that this growth/shrinking has on these areas of our state with a score of at least 3’s in the traits Ideas, Organization and Conventions.

• Using the Census website, students will find and use population data to create an Excel spreadsheet with appropriate titles and data.
• Using the data, students will use a word processing program to create a document that answers the guide questions presented by the teacher with fewer than five errors in conventional issues such as spelling, punctuation and grammar.

Students must have basic Internet skills such as going to a specific website given by the teacher. Students must also have basic word processing skills.

Materials

Computer with Internet access
A spreadsheet program
The spreadsheet template
A word processing program
Guide questions - one copy per student

Accommodations for Special Needs

For the Sheltered English Immersion Students, the teacher could pair them with a student strong in language arts. For the Special Education Students, the teacher could reduce the amount of information for them to find.  Instead of doing all 15 counties, the teacher could have them find information for 7 or 8 counties.  The teacher could also ask them to focus on only one of two questions that were at their ability. For the gifted students, the teacher could ask them to expand on what they have learned in the lesson by creating a presentation on their findings by using a program such as PowerPoint. Perhaps a persuasive presentation could be created that involves the students asking people to move into another county for various reasons from the graph based on their conclusions about the population.

Procedures

Day One: In the Classroom

• Teacher will ask students to talk about how our state has changed. Teacher will allow students to respond to this through a think-pair-share process. Students think for a few seconds, then they pair with a partner and share their ideas with that partner.
• Teacher will ask pairs to share one specific change that they thought of.
• If population is not mentioned, teacher will suggest population and discuss with students how this affects our state.
• Teacher will ask students how the population is determined. Students will respond.
• Teacher will introduce the Census if it is not mentioned. Teacher will direct students' attention to the classroom computer. Teacher will show students to the Census website at www.census.gov.
• Teacher will discuss with students how a more in depth look at smaller populations could lead to more accurate results in gathering and interpreting data.
• Teacher will show students how to maneuver around the Census website in order to gather accurate data.

• Teacher will assign students partners for this activity. Teacher will explain that one computer will be used for Internet usage and the other for the spreadsheet program.  Teacher might want to assign computer jobs previous to lab time.
• Teacher will ask specific students to go to the Census website. Teacher will demonstrate how to find the population data for two years, for one specific county. Using some sort of projector or TV converter, teacher will demonstrate which data students need to use to complete the assignment.
• Teacher will ask specific students to pull up spreadsheet template from appropriate source. Using some sort of projector or TV converter, teacher will demonstrate how to enter data into the template.
• Teacher will allow appropriate time length for students to collect all data.
• Teacher will demonstrate how to create a graph from the data collected using the spreadsheet page. Under the insert tab, click on charts.  Choose a chart that would work with this type of information, such as a bar graph.  Follow the steps that the chart wizard gives to complete your graph. When graph is complete, students will print out a copy and save it to disk or server space.

• Teacher will discuss the data gathered and how it can be used to determine community needs within Arizona.
• Teacher will pass out the guide questions which the students in their pairs will answer using their graph.  Students will hypothesize how the increase or decrease in population could affect the county.
• Student pairs will begin working their answers into a paragraph that focuses on the impact of population change in Arizona. Teacher may choose to give the students a sample lead such as, “The change in population from year to year has great impact in each county.” Students who need more help in writing could use that lead to get them thinking about what to write.
• Student pairs will produce a rough copy of their paragraphs. Working together they will edit and revise in order to publish.

• Students will bring their rough drafts, edited and revised into the lab to publish.
• Students will open their previous spreadsheet graph and save it into their word processing document.
• Students will title their work.
• Students will type their paragraphs into the word processing program.
• Students will save their work and print out one copy for submission to the teacher.

Students will be assessed throughout the entire lesson; however, they will be formally assessed using their final product.  Students will receive 40 points for using the spreadsheet program to collect and graph their data. 20 points will be given based on the Excel data collection. The other 20 points will be given for graphing elements such as title, labels, and differing colors in the graph.  The other 60 points will be given based on the writing sample that the pairs produce.  The writing will be assessed for the traits Ideas, Fluency, and Conventions, each worth 18 points.  Teacher will double the rubric score to assign point value.  The remaining 6 points will be given based on the inserting of the graph into their document.

Teacher Name: Robert Walling
Site: Painted Sky
Date Submitted: January 7, 2003